Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
-
Craig Garber: All about… me
“Whether you think you can or think you can’t — you are right” Henry Ford We’ve been making a number of changes to our blog, and we still have more to go, but I’d love to get your input on this one, in particular. Check out my new “About Me” page and let me know…
-
Positioning mistakes people make that come back to haunt you:
“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” Eleanor Roosevelt Today’s quote has a lot to do with “positioning.” Not many people talk about “positioning,” but it’s a critical component of how your marketplace perceives you. And the foundation of your positioning is 100% based on how you see yourself and how you…
-
Why We Work: Her Sweaty Damp Curls In The Palm Of My Hand
Today’s my daughter’s 12th birthday. I first wrote this probably 8 or 9 years ago – I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think: I love putting my daughter to bed. It’s one of the few times I have no problem letting go and disconnecting, and simply enjoy being right there in…
-
Helicopter Parents: A Nation of Enablers Raising A Nation Of Enablers
Absolutely unbelievable article I read in the Times recently. It’s called “Preschoolers in Surgery for a Mouthful of Cavities” Apparently, there are now enough people forgetting to show their own preschool-aged children to brush their teeth… pediatric dentists are having to perform a new and apparently, fairly routine procedure. See, so many kids aren’t brushing…
-
Business Strategy Consulting – About that Starbucks offer you received in your inbox yesterday:
Here’s some business strategy consulting anyone can use. And… this is gonna be good, so pay attention. There are a couple of different components that go into crafting an offer. And you need to consider both of them, because having one without the other is like having a brand new Corvette and a full tank…
-
Business Strategy Consulting: What did YOU do yesterday?
Last week I was working on a project, REALLY intensely. And to be honest, I was pretty stressed out because of it. But I was stressing out, for no reason. I say, “for no reason,” because in looking back… the truth is, I CHOSE to be stressed out, just the same way I could have…
-
e-mail Marketing – "Quickie" e-mail marketing strategies that make a HUGE difference:
I’m sure you had this same experience over the last few days, where you got a slew of e-mails offering “Leap Year” sales. Offers like 29% off… Free Shipping… and just “general” sale pieces. Couple of comments on these sales: 1. When you’re offering sales… make sure your sale offering is understandable. “Save 29%” is…
-
Lead Generation Marketing – Use any of these three strategies immediately, to reactivate your old customers:
I was in meetings pretty much all last week – so now it’s time to get re-activated. And in fact, that’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today – “re-activating” your old customers. Because this is a fairly easy way to generate some relatively “new” business. Unless you’re selling life-event products and services —…
-
e-mail marketing tips – This is THE best way to get your e-mail opened:
Today’s message is going to be short… and sweet. I want to teach you the best way to get your e-mails opened. This also happens to be the best way to get your direct mail opened… the best way to get your wife and kids to listen to you… and the best way to get…
-
Small Business Marketing – How to almost DOUBLE your productivity:
I’ve been doing something for the last three weeks or so, that has almost doubled my productivity, and I wanted to share it with you. It’s SO easy to do — and, it takes maybe 5 extra minutes per day, to implement. And yet… it’s probably going to be responsible for most of the extra…
-
Small Business Marketing: Big breakthrough solutions most people miss
Today I want to talk to you about something incredibly important. It’s a very basic concept that virtually everyone (including myself, at times) overlooks. So to make sure you don’t overlook this, ever again… I’m going to give you the genesis of this concept. And I think, once you see the almost ridiculous simplicity of…
-
Writing Sales Letters – How to get your customers, clients, and patients, to write your sales letters for you:
One of the simplest things you can do, to boost sales and the response rates of your marketing, in general, is to let your customers write these pieces for you. I don’t mean, literally sit down and write them for you, but if you listen… they can create almost all your content. For example, when…
-
Direct-Marketing Strategies: 3 Crippling sales mistakes
Over the last few days I had the opportunity to deal with a few different vendors, while I was in the middle of purchasing a couple of different services — both business and personal. I was amazed how many simple things these vendors screwed up and got wrong. Wrong for the customer — and wrong…
-
Direct-Marketing Strategies: 3 Ways to make your offers even MORE irresistible
There’s nothing more compelling — nothing more likely to get your prospects to buy — than an irresistible offer. So, here are three simple ways you can make ANY offer more irresistible. 1. Offer something NOW. Many sales are made online, and often… these goods and services have to be shipped out to you, or…
-
Business Sales Strategies: 31 down, 69 to go – 17+ hours total
On January 3rd, I published this post on my blog: “But now… it’s back to reality. It’s the New Year and we’re all busy cranking up our little machines once again, right? You bet. For me, maybe this is unusual, but my goals aren’t business related. And here’s why: I’ve found, when I’m in shape…
-
Direct-Response Marketing: What parents know (and don't know) about selling, that you don't
Last week I was reviewing a web site for a client. The site had a number of problems with it, but the biggest problem was that the client would never ever, ever make any money with it. Why? The answer is simple: there was no call to action. The website was, in a sense, nothing…
-
Business Sales Strategy – How to look like a big, dumb, "cash rules everything around me" corporation:
Two days ago, I got an e-mail from Mercedes-Benz USA. I love Mercedes — their cars, their history, and their commitment to excellence. But this e-mail pretty much exemplified almost everything you can do wrong when you’re speaking to your customers. And unfortunately, it’s extremely typical of big companies. The subject line of the e-mail…
-
Direct Marketing Strategies: 3 Ways to leverage numbers and pricing
Interesting article about pricing, over on truthdive.com A couple of professors out of Virginia Tech recently did some studies about how consumers react to prices. And it turns out, HOW you present things is FAR more important than WHAT you are presenting. Which should be no surprise to anyone who’s had even a little bit…
-
Sales Strategy Consulting: Do you sell face to face, over the phone, or to groups?
If you sell face to face, in person… over the phones, or by speaking in front of groups… then what I’m about to tell you, will eliminate over 90% of the anxiety you’re feeling, when it comes to selling. It’s a very simple thing, and yet… for some strange reason, people have a hard time…
Got any book recommendations?